a; *32-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, May 31,2003 SCHUYLKILL COUNTY FAIR SETS ENTERTAINMENT The Schuylkill County Fair will celebrate its 20th Anniver sary, “Mountains of Memories” July 28-Aug. 2 at the Schuylkill County Fairgrounds, Rt. 895, Summit Station. About 30,000 visitors enjoyed last year’s fair during a weeklong heat advisory, and this year’s en tertainment lineup, as well as the addition of a third weeklong fam ily show, should have everyone eager to attend the Schuylkill County Fair. Monday, July 28, sponsored by Martin’s Motor Home Rentals and Pine Grove Landfill/Waste Management will feature Ryan Pelton, one of the best Elvis im personators. Also, you won’t want to miss the first ever Draft Horse Pull competition at the fair. “If you’ve ever been to the Farm Show, it’s hard to get a seat in the large arena for the horse pulls,” said Bob Evanchalk, live stock chairman. “Most of the pullers are from northern Penn sylvania and New York, and we’re real happy we were able to entice them to Schuylkill Coun ty.” On Tuesday, Rebecca Lynn Howard, a hot new Nashville singer with her Number 1 hit sin gle “Forgive” will grace the main stage. Rebecca has been nominat ed for two Academy of Country Music awards including Top New Female Vocalist and Song of the Year. Her hit video “For give” was nominated for the CMT Flameworthy Female Video of the Year. Admission for kids 12 and under on Tuesday' will be $5, thanks to sponsors, Alcoa and Arthur ‘Pat’ Aungst, Inc. Wednesday, gospel favorites, The Wilburns will take the stage on Senior Citizen Day sponsored by South Schuylkill Printing and Publishing and Copycat Business Systems. The Wilburns, have been singing Southern gospel music for 33 years. Hits like “Resting Place,” “Another Cross ing,” “Coming Out Of The Wil derness,” and “God’s Promised Land” are sure to please fair goers. “Seniors 60 and older will be admitted for $5 on Wednesday and special entertainment will in clude the Dan and Galla Variety Show, a King and Queen contest, and lots more fun for seniors,” said Grace Karrer, senior events coordinator. On Thursday, The Grass Roots will perform some of their oldie hits including “Temptation Eyes,” “Midnight Confessions,” and “Let’s Live For Today” thanks to sponsor Pioneer Pole Buddings. From their first hit, “Where Were You When I Needed You,” in 1966 they had a string of 14 top 40 hits that kept the band on the charts nearly every week. “Spend an evening with The Grass Roots and you’ll be singing ‘Sooner Or Later’,” said Ron Blew, entertainment coordinator. Thanks to sponsor Schaeffer’s Harley Davidson/Buell, Nashville recording artist Steve Holy will perform his Number 1 hit and the Number 4 Top Country Song of 2002, “Good Morning Beauti ful” at the Schuylkill County Fair on Friday. Top 20’s “Blue Moon” and “The Hunger” com pliment his latest release, “Rock A Bye Heart” which is 37th on the country charts. “Steve’s second show was rain ed out two years ago when he filled in for Clay Davidson, who was in a car accident. We knew we had to get him back because the crowd just loved him, espe cially when he sang ‘Good Morn ing Beautiful’ which hadn’t even hit the charts at that time,” said Kim Morgan of the fair enter tainment committee. On Saturday, Aug. 2, Davy Jones of The Monkees, will in vade the Schuylkill County Fair grounds with hits “Daydream Believer,” “Last Train To Clarks ville,” “I’m a Believer,” and many more! Davy Jones first in vaded teen, hearts as the interna tional idol of millions in the 1960’s Emmy Award winning TV classic “The Monkees.” Davy has triumphed as both a serious actor and a comedian on the theatrical stage; as a rock musician, com poser and artist; and true to his first love, as an extremely able horseman. “The Schuylkill County Visi tors Bureau made this all possi ble. Without their support, we simply would not have been able to afford such a quality entertain er like Davy Jones,” said Craig Morgan, fair chairman. Monday through Friday there will be two performances one at 7 p.m. and one at 9 p.m. On Saturday there will be one show only at 8:30 p.m. In addition to the top name en tertainers, enjoy amusement rides, livestock shows and exhi bits, contests, and other sights and sounds of the great Schuyl kill County Fair for just $7 per person. This year there are three fami ly oriented shows three times each day starting at 12:30 with Wagstaff, a ventriloquist featured on America’s Funniest Home Videos, Bwana Jim’s Reptile Show and The New Dawn Sing ers thanks to a combination of sponsors including M & T Bank, Leesport Bank, Fuller Brothers Construction, Seltzer Insurance Agency, Red Lion Cafe, and Schuylkill Economic Develop ment Corporation. The New Dawn Singers hail from Florida and have toured throughout the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Jamaica, into the Baha mas. They bring a Broadway style show full of high energy song and dance, and a great mes sage woven throughout the show that America lives on and so does her people. Also, see Randy Boni, profes sional chainsaw carver, Tuesday through Friday thanks to spon sors Koch’s Lawn and Garden, Reynold Miller Sawmill, and Pio neer Seamless Gutters. Plus, tour the farm museum and hands-on nature center, sportsmen’s exhibit, see livestock, poultry and other exhibits, an tique tractors and gas engines, and more as part of the daily ad mission. The fair’s first ever An tique Tractor Pull will be con ducted Saturday also. Plenty of free parking and modern rest rooms are available. The Schuylkill County Fair is nestled in the beautiful Appala chian Mountains, just 40 minutes from Harrisburg or Allentown. For more information about the Schuylkill County Fair visit their Website at www.schuylkil lfair.com or call (570) 754-FAIR. Fair Commissions Feather Artist Painting The Schuylkill County Fair unveiled their 20th Anniversary commemorative print at a press conference at Schaeffer’s Harley Davidson/Buell yesterday. The painting depicts “Mountains of Memories” of past Schuylkill County fair scenes highlighting the youth and livestock features of the fair. The original painting will be sold to the highest bidder before the youth livestock auction on Thursday, July 31 during the Schuylkill County Fair. The painting is unique in that it is painted on a grouse tail. Allen E. Crothamel, a nature and wildlife artist from Lake Ariel, Pennsylvania paints on the un usual medium of tail feathers of grouse and turkey and was com missioned to paint the fair scene. Allen has painted over 160 original paintings and works with many wildlife organization fund raisers across the country, includ ing Rocky Mt. Elk Foundation, Ducks Unlimited, National Wild Turkey Federation, Ruffed Grouse Society, Whitetail Deer Association, Fur Trappers Asso ciation, The Audubon Society, Trout Unlimited, and Pheasants Forever. The artist has appeared on sev eral television shows airing na tionally and locally. Pen and ink illustrations have been published by magazine and book authors. Feather prints are available for purchase in stores and art galler ies around the world. Allen was commissioned for a painting sent to the Australian Summer Olympics, has sent paintings to many other parts of the world, and has been selected for numerous awards in the art world, including the Eastman Kodak award for innovative art printing. Recently the artist’s work was featured in the Fox Ridge Outfitters worldwide cata logue. A limited edition of 500 20th anniversary prints will be offered for sale and can be purchased for $25 at the Conservation District office in the Ag Center located on the Gordon Nagle Trail. The fair will commission two additional prints with next years print fea turing the 10th Anniversary of the Schuylkill County Agricul ture Museum painted on turkey feathers. The scene will feature a tractor and a team of draft horses in a pull-off with the Ag Museum in the background. For more information about the Schuylkill County Fair, call (570) 622-3742, ext. 112 or visit the fair Website at www.schuyl killfair.com. Fair Premium Book Available The 2003 20th Anniversary edition of the Schuylkill County Fair Premium Book is available. Pick up a copy at the Schuylkill County Ag Center located along the Gordon Nagle Trail, open from 8:30 a.m. through 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. The Schuylkill County Fair is sched uled July 28-Aug. 2 at the Schuylkill County Fairgrounds in Summit Station. The premium book contains the general entry form for live stock, fruits and vegetables, floral exhibits, needlecrafts, arts and crafts, and others. The center page of the book also contains the schedule of events for the entire fair week with entertainment in cluding: Davy Jones of the Mon kees, Steve Holy, The Grass Roots, Rebecca Lynn Howard, The Wilburns, and Ryan Pelton. To have a premium book mailed to you, send a check or money order for $2 payable to F.A.R.M. and mail to P.O. Box 222, Summit Station, PA 17979. For more information about the Schuylkill County Fair, call (570) 622-3742, ext. 112 or visit the fair Website at www.schuylkil lfair.com. Interested vendors should call Shirley German at (570) 385-0384. History Of Fairs Editor’s Note: This excerpt on the history of fairs was taken from the “1998 Fair Manage ment Reference, ” an lAFE publi cation containing 13 chapters covering all facets of fair man agement. The reference was com piled and edited by Mike Heffron, retired manager of the Minnesota State Fair. The history of fairs is clouded and the record is less than com plete. Nonetheless, the story of mankind is replete with refer ences to fairs, not in an institu tional context, but as a part of ev eryday social intercourse. A casual observer might con clude that American fairs and ex hibitions came fresh out of eigh teenth century western Europe, delivered to the colonial docks of Boston and Halifax with a pre disposed mission to serve agricul ture and animal husbandry. This observation fits with our collective sense of tradition, but fails to recognize centuries of his torical linkage to the eastern Mediterranean before the birth of Christ. Old and New Testament references to fairs are mixed with allusions to commerce, trade, the marketplace, festivals, religious feasts, and holy days. Where and when the first fair was conducted is not known, however, evidence points to the existence of fairs as early as 500 BC Scripture records in the book of Ezekiel: “Tarshish was thy merchant by reason of the multi tude of the kinds of riches with silver, iron, tin, and lead, they traded in thy fairs.” Ezekiel’s ac count of the destruction of Tyre, supposedly written about 588 BC, describes Tyre as an impor tant market and fair center. Fairs were commercial in char acter from the beginning. Mer chants from distant countries would come together, bringing native wares to trade with one another, and even though it is not clearly explained in Ezekiel or in other biblical references, it is rea sonable to assume that “fair” was the name given to the place at which early trading between for eign merchants was conducted. It is equally clear that religious activity was companion to the commerce. The Latin world “feria” meaning holy day, would appear the logical root of the word “fair.” Each feria was a day when large numbers of people would assemble for worship. Worship in those early days was centered around temples in great cities, including Ninevah, Athens, Rome, and Mecca. These cities were also respected as the great commercial centers of the world. Fields adjacent to these temples were staked out for traders. Reli gious figures were placed about the fields in order to protect the traders and merchants. During the early Christian era, the church took an active part in sponsoring fairs on feast days, and as a result, fairs came to be a source of revenue for the church. Possibly, our modern church ba zaars possess some rudiments of these religious fairs. This evolution which blended religion and commerce continued over time and moved into west ern Europe. Periodic gatherings brought together the producers of all types of commodities for the purpose of barter, exchange and, finally, outright sale. To this mar ketplace were added entertain ment and other forms of activity thus, these primitive markets took on the aspect of fairs as we know them today. In 1765, less than 300 years after Columbus finished his work in the New World, the first American fair was presented in Windsor, Nova Scotia. The same fair continues to operate today. In upper Canada, as Ontario was known in early Confederation, a fair was conducted in 1792, spon sored by the Niagara Agricultural Society. As with Windsor, the Ni agara Fair remains in operation today. In addition, many small fairs were conducted during the early 1700’s in French Canada while under French rule. Meanwhile, Elkanah Watson, a New England patriot and farm er, earned the title, “Father of U.S. agricultural fairs” by pro ducing (the first) a small exhibit of sheep under an old elm tree in the town of Pittsfield, Massachu setts. The year was 1807. He be lieved that the fine textured fleece of the exhibited sheep, when manufactured into cloth, would successfully compete with the best wool imported from Eng land. He wrote, “Many farmers, and even women, were excited by curiosity to attend this first novel and humble exhibition.” In 1810 Watson staged a larger and more ambitious project, a Berkshire cattle show. The event was successful beyond all his ex pectations; entries included 386 sheep, 109 oxen, 9 cows, 7 folds, 3 heifers, 2 calves, and 1 boar. Early American fairs in both Canada and the U.S. shifted qui etly, but decisively away from the European festival model into the systematic development of agri culture and animal husbandry while offering education, local re source and local industry promo tion, and entertainment. Compe tition became the cornerstone of fair programming; youth devel opment provided a social theme. The 19th century closed with almost every state and province having one or more agricultural fair or exhibition. Today, more than 3,200 fairs are conducted in North America each year. They provide industri al exhibits, demonstrations, and competition aimed at the ad vancement of livestock, horticul ture, and agriculture with special emphasis placed on educational activitites such as 4-H, FFA, and similar youth development pro grams. While enjoying these high-minded pursuits, fair visi tors are also able to see, hear, touch, smell, and taste the rich- ness and variety of what the world has to offer. ¥ * 1 >
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers